Locking slider for slide fasteners



July 14, 1942. c. J. BERG I.|OCKINGV SLIDER FOR SLIDE EASTENERS Filed Oct. 24, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 '/lNvi-:NTQR

CARL J. BERG ATTORNEYS i July14, 1942.

C, J. BERG LOCKING SLIDER FOR SLIDE FASTENERS 2 sheets-sheet 2 Filed oct. 24, V1941 I lNvENToR CARL J. BERG Fig. 4, but showing a modified pull;

Patented July-14, 1942 UNITED. STATES PATENT- oFFlcE l LocmNG snmnnz'mna rAs'reNnns Carl J. Berg, Newark, N. J., assignor to Conmar Products Corporation, Newark.. N. ration of New Jersey J., a corpo- Application october 24, 1941, 'serai cNo. 416,308

(chai-205.5)

15 Claims.

This invention relates to slide fasteners. The primary object of my invention is to generally improve slide fasteners, and more ,particu` larly locking 'sliders for the same.

More specific objects of my invention are to provide a locking slider which locks automatically by means of awspring, but the mechanism of which is relatively simple and rugged, and requires only a single relatively large dependable spring.

To the accomplishment ofthe foregoing general objects and'such other more specific objects as may hereinafter appeanmy invention consists in the locking slider elements and their relation one to the other, as hereinafter are more particularly described inthe speciiication and sought to be deiinedin the claims. The specication is accompanied by drawings, in which:

Fig. y1 is\a front elevation of a locking slider embodying features of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken approximately in the plane ofthe line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of having a modified form of spring;

flig.y 4' isa section taken approximately inthe a locking slider plane of the line I--4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section similar to Fig. 6 is a front elevation of a locking slider gener-ally like that shown in Figs. 3 and 4 but employing a twg-piece pull Fig. 7 is a section taken approximatelyin the Aplane of the line 1-1 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 isa partially sectioned side elevation with the slider in unlocked condition;

Fig. 9 is a. front elevation of a modiiied form of the invention in which the locking springextends transversely rather than longitudinally of the slider;

Fig. 10 is a side elevation of the same;

Fig. 11 is a front elevation with the spring and pull removed Fig. 12 is a transverse section taken approximately in the plane of the line I2-I2 of Fig. 10;-

Fig. 13 is a side elevation similar to Fig. 10.

' b ut yshowing the slider in unlocked condition;

Fig.\14 isa section taken approximately in the plane oi the line Il--illof Fig. 13, Fig. 14 being similar to Fig. 12, but showing the parts of the slider in unlocked condition; i

lFig.` 15 is a perspective view of the Spring,

showing the slider-locking tooth at one end;

Fig. 16 is a section taken between the front and back walls of a slider similar to that shown in Figs. 9 through I5, but employinga spring tively'extensive fiat spring S is disposed generally parallel to and spaced outside the slider body. A slider locking tooth T is provided at an end of spring S as. for example. by bending the spring inwardly to form the tooth. The spring rests on spaced fulcrums, and when the pull P is raised to operate the slider a part of the pull ilexes the spring S inwardly between the fulcrums, thereby raising the end 'of the spring and consequently the toothT, and so unlocking the slider.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the slider body B there shown comprises a front wall I2 and a back wall Il, said walls being secured together by an appropriate neck portion I6. In the present case the front and back walls are indented and welded together, but the particular form of construction used for the slider body is unimportant to the present invention.

i front wall of' the-slider during manufacture ofv The side edges of the slider walls are turned inwardly or hanged, as is indicated at I8 and 20 in Fig. 2, for cooperation with the elements of the slide fastener. The front wall I2 of the slider is provided with a lug 22 on which the pull 24 is pivoted as, for example, by means of pivots or trunnions 26 which may be formed integrally onI the inner edges of the bifurcations 28 of pull 24, said bifurcations straddling the lug 22.

. Therelatively extensive nat spring 30 is dis'- posed generally parallel to and outside the front wall I2 of the slider. It is spaced somewhatfrom pthe front wall by means of fulcrums 32. -In the present case these are projections formed on the the slider. The fulcrums are located at intermediate points. that is, between the ends. and the middle portion of thespring 30.

The pivots 2B of pull 24 are located within the ends 3l of the pull. The resulting short projecting ends I4 are so dimensioned as to bear against the middle portion of the spring 30' when the pull 24 is raised. This will be clear from inspection of Fig. 2, in which it will be seen that when pull "within the opening 40.'

24 is lifted from the solid line position to the broken line position 24', the ends 34 flex the spring4 inwardly between the fulcrums until the spring bears against the slider wall, which prevents further movement. AThe ends of spring 30 move outwardly away from the slider, as is indicated by the broken line position 30. The locking tooth 36, which is bent inwardly at one end of spring 30, normally engages or ts between fastener elements of the slide fastener, but when the spring is flexed frorxrthe normalposition 30 to the bentlpositionfthe tooth .36 lis moved outwardlyto the lposition 36', thus clearing the slide fastener elements.

The slider is self-locking, because immediately upon release of the pull itis snapped back from the position 24 to the position 24 by the self-restoring action of the spring from the flexed position' 30' to its normal position 30.

The spring 30 is out away at the center to clear the lug 22, and this alone may be taken advantage of to locate the spring on the slider. However, the spring may be additionally or alternatively locatedby turning the ends of the same inwardly. Thi'sis-indicated by the inturned ends 38 at the-forked upper end of the spring, and the inturned tooth 36. at the lower end.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, I there show a slider body B which is generally similar to that shown in Figs. 1 and 2, except that asuitable the arrangement of Fig. there'arises the disadvantage that the rst part of the outward movement of the pull does not flex the spring, there being lost motion in the unlocking operation of the pull. It is necessary to raise the pull an increased amount before attempting to move the slider. For most purposes this is not at all important, because most people turn the pull to the limit of its movement before attempting to move the slider.

However, it is possible by further modifying the pull to provide an-arrangement in which the pull may be turned to almost any desired angle. This result may be obtained by the provision of what may be termed a two-piece pull. Such an arrangement is illustrated in Figs. 6, 7, and 8, referring to which it will be seen that the slider 54 is generally like that previously described, and the locking spring 56 is similar to that previously described. The pull, however, is a two-piece pull comprising a lever portion 58 and a, finger piece portion 60. These are araperture or window 40 is provided for the locking Y neck portion of the slider. As' before, the spring is cut away to't around theslider lug 22.

The pull 24 may be identical with that previquslyjdescribed, it being divided to t around liig'jf22'` and having pivots 26.whicharelreceived n'the luglfth'e projecting4 ends 34 bearing against ,geen t V the broken line position 44'. At this time the tooth 42 is'lifted out of engagement with the fasortion of the spring and bending the the solid line position 44 (Fig. 4) to tener elements,'tol that-broken line position 42 In Figs. 2 and 4 the broken lineposition 24' of the pull represents its raised or operating po'- sitionflnfsome cases it may be desired that the pull swing outwardly to a greater angle for operation of the slider. This may be accomplished the pull may be raised through a greater angle,

as will be seen by comparing the limiting position 52 in Fig. 5 with the limiting position 24 in Fig. 4. 'Ihe arrangement of Fig. 5 will be fully self-locking, because even-though the pull 52 may '.be turned to a nearly perpendicular position, the

portion 5U .against which the flexed spring 44 reacts i's at an angle, making it impossible for th'e spring to be jammed and held in the flexed position. It may be pointed out, however, that with portion are located intermediate the ends and, are receivedin the lug, just as was previously described.

Referring now to Fig. 8, it will be seen that when the linger piece portion 60 is pulled in the direction of the broken lines 60 the lever portion 58 exes spring 56 and unlocks the slider.

Similarly vif the finger piece portion 60 is pulled l in the direction of the solid lines, the lever portion 58 ilexes the spring 56 and unlocks the slider. 'I'hus the finger piece portion may be swung to any desired angle, and if pulled outwardly at all, will function to cause the lever portion to unlock the slider. v The pivots 66 are preferably formed integrally on the inner edges of the bifurcated lever portion 58, and similarly the pivots 62 are preferably formed integrally on the inner edges of the bifurcated finger piece portion 6D. f This construction permits theparts to be assembled by simplybending the branches from an initially spread position to the parallel position shown. In the several forms of the invention so far described, the locking spring has been disposed longitudinally of the slider. I consider this a preferable arrangement because it makes possible maximum dimension of the spring. However, it is also possible to dispose the spring transversely of the slider, and such an arrangement is illustrated in Figs. 9 through 15 of the drawings. Referring to those figures, the slider body 10 may be of the general character previously described. The spring 12 extends transversely of the slider approximately on a line between the corners or shoulders 14.' The lug '16 is located immediately below spring 12. The pull vhere illustrated is of the two-piece type, it comprising a lever portion 'I8 having pivots 80 received in lug 16, and a finger piece portion 82 as is clearly shown in Fig. 14. `Oneend of the spring is'provided with a lockingtooth 90y which passes-through anopening or window 82. In the` flexed position shown in Fig;` 14 the tooth 90 i's drawn into the opening 92. The ends of the spring are preferably-turned inwardly, as is indicated at 94, thereby avoiding exposed sharp edges, and improving the appearance of the slider.

If desired, the slider maybe provided with projections 96 to help locate the spring against movement. These projections arepreferably located between the said lugs, instead oibeing cut away at the center to surround a single lug as here shown. y I

It will therefore be apparent that. while I have shown and describedv my invention in several preferred forms, many changes. and modifications may be made in the structures disclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention, as

located just within the downwardly turned ends 94. In practice the fulcrum projections 88 and the locating projections 96 are disposed so near one another that it is preferable to combine the vsame into single relatively flat topped 'projections, mostclearly shown at90 in Fig. 11. While it is convenient to employ 'a single structural sought to be defined in the-following claims. When the spring is provided with a tooth at only one end, the opposite end of the spring may, if desired, be shortened, and consequently' when I refer in the claims to the `pull bearing against the middleof the spring, I mean that the pressure is exerted betweenthe spaced fulcrums, and

not necessarily at the literally exact center of the spring.

I claim:

1. A locking slider for a slide fastener, a lugv on the slider, a generally fiat spring spaced outside of the slider, lfulcrums for supporting said spring at spaced points, a locking tooth pointed inwardly atan enrA of thespring for normally sufiicientto move the lever portion 18, and to thereby unlock the slider.l

The lever portion 18 may be made inthe form of a bifurcated member, that is, with a separation at the point (Figs. 9 and 12), this being desirable in order to facilitate squeezing the sides of the lever portion together when-anchoring the pivots 80 in the lug16. It will also be understood that while a pin 84 is shown between the finger piece portion 02 and the lever portion 18, this pin may be replaced vby integral pivots in the mannerv described in connection with Figs. 6, 'l and 8.

Figs. 16, 17, and 18 show a locking slider whichV l A is substantially identical with that previously described, except, however, that the present slider has two locking teeth, instead of one. v These are the teeth |02 and |04 shown in section in Fig. 16. They are formed at opposite ends of the spring |06, as will be clear from the perspective view inFig. 18. 4The teeth are preferably staggered to fit between the staggered elements of the slide fastener, and the apertures or windows |08 and ||0 for the teeth are similarly staggered, as is clearly shown in Fig. 17. The projections ||2 and the lug ||4 correspond to the parts previously described in connection with Figs.Y 9

through 15. l

The possibility of using more than one locking tooth is not limited to the transversespring arrangement shown in Figs. 9 through 18. For example, in Fig. l either or both of the dow'nturned ends 38 of the spring may be -lengthened somewhat to form a locking tooth. If desired, the lower end of the spring may be provided with two locking teeth, preferably staggered somewhat relative to one another. The same applies to the Vlower end of the spring shown in Figs. 3

through 8. o

It is believed that the construction and operation of my improved locking slider, as well as the advantages thereof, will be apparent from theforegoing detailed description. It will be understood that the pull may be pivoted between spaced lugs, instead of straddling a single center engaging the elemrnts of the slide fastener and thereby locking the slider, a pull pivoted on said lug, said pull having a portion for bearing inwardly against the spring between the fulcrums vwhen th pull isv used to operate the slider, the inward flexing ofthe spring between the fulcrums causing an outwardmovement at the tooth with consequent unlocking of the slider. f

2. `A. locking slider for a slide fastener, a. lug on the slider, a generally flat spring spaced outside of the slider, spaced fulcrums for supporting l said springat points intermediate the ends and the center portion, a locking tooth bent inwardly -at ian end of the spring for normally engaging the elements of the slide fastener and thereby locking the slider, a pull pivoted on said lug, said pull having a portion for bearing inwardly against the middle of the spring when the pull is raised or pulled to operate the slider, the inward flexing of the spring at the middle causing an outward movement at the ends with consequent unlocking of the slider.

3. A locking slider for a slide fastener, said slider comprising appropriately flanged front and back walls secured ltogether at a neck portion, a lug on the front wall for pivotallyreceiving a pul1a generally flat spring disposed generally parallel to .and spaced outside of the front wall,

spaced fulcrums for supporting said spring atv points intermediate the ends and the center 'por-j tion, a locking tooth bent inwardly at an end of thel spring for normally engaging the elements4 of ,the slide fastener and' thereby lockingthe.

slider, a pull pivoted on said lug, said pull having a portion for bearing inwardly against the middle of the spring when the pull is raised or pulled to operate the slider, the inward exing ofthe spring at the middle causing an outward movement at the ends with consequent disengagement of the locking tooth from'the slide fastener.

4.a lockingslider as -deiined in claim l, in`

which the pull is a one-piece member pivoted to the lug near but within its. end, the resulting short projecting end acting as the portion whichA moves inwardly'against the spring when the pull is raised to operate the slider.

l5. A locking slider as defined in claim 1, in

which the spring extends lengthwise of the slider and is appropriately cut away toclear the lug.

6. A locking slider as deilned in'. claim 1, in

lug, in which case the longitudinal spring will be which the end of the Spring opposite the locking tooth has means to' help locate the spring on the slider. l l l '7. AV locking slider as -dened iii claim 1, in which the pull is a one-piece member pivoted to the lug near but within its end, the resulting short'projecting end acting as the portion which moves inwardly against the spring when the pull is raised, and in which the spring extends length- ,wise of the slider and is appropriately cut vaway to clear the lug, the upper end of said spring having means to help locate the same on the slider, and thelower end of said spring having the aforesaid locking tooth.

8. A locking slider as defined in claim 1,'in'

which the pull is a two-piece pull comprising a lever portion and a finger piece portion, the lever portion being pivoted intermediate its ends on the lug, the finger pieceiportion being pivoted to one end of the lever portion, andthe opposite end of the lever portion constituting the portion for bearing against the spring.

9. A locking slider as defined in claim 1, in

' which the pull is a two-piece pull comprising a lever portion and a :linger piece portion, the lever portion being pivoted intermediate its ends on the lug, the linger piece portion being pivoted to 11. A locking slider as dened in claim 1, in

which the spring extends transversely across theV t race of the slider in a direction from shoulder to shoulder.

12.,A locking slider as dened in, claim 1, in which the spring extends transversely across the i'aceof the slider in a direction from shoulder to shoulder, and is located 'above the lug.

13. A locking slider as dened in claim 1, in

lwhich the fulcrum means are broad enough so that th'e inner edges act as fulcrum means for the spring while the outer edges act as locating means for the spring.

14. A locking slider as defined in claim 1, in which both ends of said springare turned inwardly to form locating means, the fulcrum means being broad enough so that the inner edges j act as fulcrum means for the spring while the one end oi the lever portion', and the opposite end of the lever portion constituting the portion yfor bearing against the spring, and in which the spring extends generally lengthwise oi' the slider and is appropriately cut away to clear the lug.

10. A locking slider as defined in claim 1, in

:which each end o1 the spring has a locking tooth.

`bearing against the spring.

:outer edges act as locating means for the spring,

at least one inwardly turned end being extended CARL J. BERG'. 

